Predator relies on its quippy one-liners to save itself from the fact that it has no discernable plot, flat caricatures, and cheesy CGI.
Army sniper Quinn McKenna (Boyd Holbrook) and his team are attacked by a Predator on a mission. As a cover-up, government agent Will Traeger (Sterling K. Brown) places McKenna with a group of soldiers on their way to group therapy as they are no longer mentally fit for active duty. However, this is not before McKenna sends the Predator mask and gauntlet home where his son Rory (Jacob Tremblay) is able to figure out the technology. Meanwhile, Traeger recruits biologist Casey Bracket (Olivia Munn) to examine the captured Predator.
Predator has a promising start. The early action scenes are interesting, and the characters all have their own quirks creating an effective ensemble chemistry. As a result, the dark violent action scenes are littered with humorous one-liners that give Predator a strange but enjoyable energy.
However, it becomes evident that Predator does not have any more tricks up its sleeves. Predator completely loses its fun energy as action scene blends into action scene and joke blends into joke, making the film feel tortuously endless.
Predator has a talented ensemble cast and is directed and co-written by Shane Black, whose previous work include the incredible The Nice Guys. If only Predator put a modicum of effort into its plot and characters it could have been something special, akin to Kong: Skull Island.
Similar to Kong: Skull Island, Predator juggles its large cast and is unable to give all the actors roles that are fully deserving of their skill. Predator pretends it can replace effective characterization with caricatures that are distinguishable by a variety of quirks and behaviors.
This works at first as scenes filled with banter toward the beginning of Predator make the characters feel real. However, after each character gets to give their one line summarizing their backstory they are tossed into the background.
The entire cast feels completely committed to their roles, but unfortunately Predator is not committed to its characters. Sterling K. Brown gives a particularly strong performance as the film’s human antagonist,; however, it is never really clear what Brown’s character’s role actually is in the government and his motives do not seem to be developed beyond wanting to keep the Predator secret.
Predator tries to mask its weak CGI by having essentially the entire film take place in the dark. Some of the action sequences are interestingly choreographed, especially an early one in the film that interweaves numerous plotlines until they all meet up. Eventually it becomes hard to stay engaged as all the action sequences start to blend together in the dark.
A common critique of PG-13 superhero films is that they are filled with violence but they get away with it because there is no gore. Predator, on the other hand, relishes its R-rating to fill the movie with gore. However, the gore is not at all impactful, it is just further perpetuating the mindless violence and really just feels tacky. There is no reason why one movie needs to show numerous people’s intestines.
While Predator has a promising start, it proves to be a mindless sci-fi action film. Predator compensates for its barebone plot with seemingly endless action sequences. By the end, these action scenes lose their sense of excitement and are completely devoid of terror.
Grade: C-
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